Minnesota Wild News

Fleury will return to the net on Friday for a Minnesota Wild team that has uncharacteristically been unable to keep the puck out of their net, regardless of who is in between the pipes. In two games this season (1-1-0), Fleury has a 3.55 GAA, which is slightly better than the Wild's league-worst 4.43 goals allowed per game. Fleury and the Wild will have a chance to get things back on track Friday as they visit a Washington Capitals team that is scoring an average of only 2.00 goals per game, second lowest in the league.

Gustavsson will return to the crease on Thursday for his third consecutive game as he looks for his third victory this season. After a heroic 41-save shutout to open the season, Gustavsson has registered a .861 SV% in his three games since (1-1-1). The Wild have had an uncharacteristic start to the season. The traditionally low-scoring, low-offence Wild, who are without Matt Boldy to boot, have the league's fourth-best offence (4.17 GF/GP) along with the third-worst defence (4.17 GA/GP). They will look to recalibrate as -111 road favourites against a Philadelphia Flyers team that has a 3-2-1 record.

Spurgeon has yet to appear in any of the Wilds' first six games this season due to an upper-body injury and has been placed on the long-term injured reserve Wednesday. The 33-year-old Wild Captain is a massive loss for Minnesota after he put up 11 goals, 34 points, and a +32 plus/minus in 79 games in 2022-23. There is still no expected timetable for his return but he was back on the ice for the first time since October 5th this week at practice.

Gaudreau did not travel with the team as they head to Philadelphia and is considered day-to-day with an upper-body injury. The 30-year-old forward has yet to pick up a point through five games after putting up 19 goals and 38 points in 82 games with the Wild in 2022-23. More updates and clarity should be provided on Gaudreau's health in the upcoming days.

Shore participated in one game with the Coachella Valley Firebirds (AHL) and failed to pick up a point before getting called up to Seatle on the weekend and will make his team debut Tuesday vs. Detroit. The 29-year-old is entering his ninth NHL season and has 50 career goals and 135 points in 422 games played. He had a goal, eight assists, 61 SOG, four PIMs and a +6 plus/minus in 47 games played with Edmonton in 2022-23.

After a remarkable 41-save shutout in his season-opening performance, Gustavsson has struggled to find his footing. In three games (1-1-1), Gustavsson has struggled to keep the puck out of his net, posting a 3.93 GAA and .906 SV%. He will look to return to form on Tuesday as the Wild host a McDavid-less Edmonton Oilers team. The Oilers have struggled to score this season, averaging only 2.60 goals per game, and will be hard-pressed to find offence tonight without their captain.

Shore failed to pick up a point in his only game for Coachella Valley (AHL) thus far this season but has been recalled to Seattle Thursday. The 29-year-old was signed to a one-year, two-way deal in the offseason worth $775,000 after scoring a goal and nine points with the Oilers in 47 games played in 2022-23. It will mark his ninth NHL season with his fifth different team when he makes his Seattle debut.

After an excellent performance in his first game of the season on Tuesday, in which he saved 27 of 29 shots in a 5-2 victory over the Montreal Canadiens, Fleury will find himself in the starter's crease for the second consecutive game. Dean Evanson and the Wild coaching staff clearly have faith in Fleury and, as such, the veteran netminder might see more action this season than initially anticipated. Filip Gustavsson will probably still see the heavier workload in net for Minnesota but it could be closer to a timeshare if Fleury continues to give his team a chance to win. Minnesota enters action on Thursday night as a slight -108 favourite against a Los Angeles Kings team that is coming off a dominant 5-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets.

Boyd made his season debut Monday vs. the New York Rangers but will head back to the press box Tuesday as a healthy scratch against the New York Islanders. The 30-year-old forward will be replaced by Michael Carcone on Arizona's fourth line. In his only appearance Monday, he failed to pick up any counting stats across 13 shifts and 9:06 TOI.

After serving as backup to Filip Gustavsson for the first two games of the season, Fleury will make his first start of the 2023-24 campaign. Fleury is in the 18th year of his NHL career and is coming off a season where he recorded a 2.85 GAA and .908 SV% in 46 games (24-16-4). Fleury's Vezina-caliber years are behind him but the veteran still has what it takes to serve as a reliable backup behind Gustavsson on what should be a defensively sound Wild team.

Boldy was off to a strong start in his third NHL season, scoring two points (1G / 1A) in two games, before suffering an upper-body injury on Saturday. Boldy is listed as week-to-week and will be a huge loss to Minnesota's offensive capabilities. Last season, Boldy recorded career-highs in goals and assists, scoring 63 points (31G / 32A) in 81 games. Marco Rossi could be a candidate to see increased offensive deployment to try and offset the loss from Boldy's absence.

Boyd will play his first game of the season after being a healthy scratch for the Coyotes in their season opener on Friday. Last season, Boyd scored 34 points (15G / 19A) in 82 games while playing an average of 16:32 per game. He is expected to slot in on the fourth line alongside Liam O'Brien and Jack McBain.

Jiricek probably would have made the team out of training camp if he wasn't waiver exempt but because he was it was an easy decision to send him back to the AHL. With Zach Werenski out for at least one week, Jiricek was recalled and Eric Robinson was waived to make room for him. The 2022 No.6 overall pick had 38 points (6G / 32A) in 55 AHL games last season.

Gustavsson stopped all 41 shots that he faced in a shutout win over the Panthers on Thursday. Gustavsson picked up right where he left off in 2023. In his last 19 regular season starts, Gustavsson is 12-1-6 with a 1.83 GAA, .943 SV% and three shutouts. As good as he's been, he draws a tough matchup in Toronto on Saturday. He stopped 22 of 24 shots in a 2-1 OT loss in his only start vs. the Maple Leafs last year.

Johansson was forced to leave Thursday's opening night win against the Panthers, but head coach Dean Evason said that he cleared all the necessary tests and participated in Friday's practice. Expect Johansson to remain on a line with Joel Eriksson Ek and Matt Boldy on Saturday.

Boyd had 15 goals, 19 assists, 94 SOG, 26 PIMs and a -32 plus/minus through 82 games played with Arizona in 2022-23 but will be a healthy scratch for their season opener vs. New Jersey. It comes as a bit of a surprise after Boyd finished sixth in team scoring last season but he will be replaced by Jack McBain. Boyd is entering his sixth NHL season and has 45 goals and 110 points in 280 career games played.

Jiricek was recalled by the Blue Jackets after their star defenseman Zach Weresnki was placed on injured reserve earlier this morning. The talented young Czech defenseman had 38 points (6G / 32A) in 55 games with the Cleveland Monsters in the AHL. Jiricek was the sixth overall pick of the Blue Jackets in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft and could be an interesting piece on the back end if Werenski is forced to miss significant time.

Johansson left Thursday's win over the Panthers after getting clipped by an elbow by Uvis Balinskis. Post-game, the Wild did not have an update on Johansson's status and said that he'll be re-evaluated on Friday. If Johansson isn't available on Saturday, expect them to dress seven defensemen because they don't have a reserve forward on the roster and no cap space to bring one up (without having to waive Dakota Mermis).